MUSKOGEE, Okla. — Muskogee Police released body camera video of what happened during an officer-involved shooting last Wednesday.
The department put three Muskogee Police officers involved in the incident on administrative leave.
Last Wednesday, Muskogee Police received a call from Kansas about a problem near North M Street.
Sergeant Andrew Branan, Sergeant James Hamlin, and Officer Michael Cook were the three officers who responded.
Police said they believed the suspect, Lee Woods, Sr., had a gun.
When the police arrived at Cook’s home, they knocked on the door.
They said that is when they could hear yelling inside and moments later, an officer spotted Woods with a gun.
Minutes later, one officer yelled for Woods to put his gun down, but he was met with gunshots.
Woods fired two shots, with one bullet hitting Officer Cook in his leg.
Woods was also shot and ran back into the house. Police told him to come out, and he did.
After it was over, Woods and Officer Cook went to the hospital.
Woods is still in the hospital and is expected to recover.
As for Officer Cook, he has been released from St. Francis Hospital in Muskogee.
The three officers involved are still on administrative leave as of right now.
Once Woods is released from the hospital, Muskogee Police said he will be charged with domestic assault with a deadly weapon and shooting with intent to kill.
Taylor Mills, Community Resource Officer for Muskogee Police, said when it comes to responding to domestic calls, it is stressful because officers don’t know what they’re going to run into.
“Essentially, a domestic call, of course, [is] one of our most dangerous calls and that’s because the emotions are heightened,” said Officer Mills. “So, you don’t really know what you’re walking into at that period of time.”
After what happened Wednesday, Muskogee Police shared the body cam video with the community and officers really went through it.
“Transparency is a big deal, whether it’s a good call or a bad call. Whether we do something right or wrong, we want to make sure we’re like, ‘Hey, we’re laying it all out on the table, so you know what we’re going through with the call and what all was involved in it’,” said Mills.
As for the officers on administrative leave, the department is giving them as much time as they need to recover from this event that they call traumatic.
“You’re self-aware of what you need mentally. You’ll know when you’re ready,” said Mills. “There’s not really a set-in-stone time of when to come back in an amount of days or anything like that, basically your self-care.”
Mills said she’s grateful the situation didn’t get worse than it did.
“What we experienced was the best-case scenario. Unfortunately, yes, [Officer Cook] was struck in the leg, but he got to go home to his family. Everyone got to go home to their families and that’s their main job every time we go out on the street or take any kind of call; that’s their main job,” said Mills.